It’s that season again. While it’s true, the air is cooler, the leaves are beginning to turn and pumpkins are beginning to appear – I am not referring to autumn. No, it’s political campaign season. Busy street corners are flooded with signs, TV ads are beginning to appear with painful frequency, and the bloggers are burning up the internet.
As much as I love history and politics – the political campaign process seems to bring out the ugliness in us as individuals and as a culture. It makes me sad.
As the great grand daughter of an important female political leader in our nation’s history, politics was an unavoidable subject throughout my childhood. (My great grandmother, Mabel Bourne Bassett, was one of the first women elected to public office.) There was memorabilia from famous elections; thank you letters from Herbert Hoover; inauguration invitations from FDR; and moving tributes written on the occasion of her death. As a child, there were trips to museums; visits to historical societies and lengthy discussions of family history. But most of all – there were stories of great leadership, humility and sacrifice for the freedoms we all enjoy in this democratic nation. Those stories – that history – are part of who I am and I carry it with me always. Each week, I write this very column on the same antique desk that my great grandmother used in her office at the Oklahoma State Capitol building and many of those tributes and letters sit on my bookshelf, alongside her photo. That legacy – as a person and as a citizen — weighs on my mind.
As this current political season dawns and the rhetoric heats up, perhaps it is time to take a few moments and think about the role we play in our own fate. What is the political legacy that my vote will leave on our community – locally, regionally and globally? I believe the answer is a very personal and individual one – as each of us has a perspective uniquely our own.
For me, it’s typically answered by reflecting on a few points:
Are they a good leader – or good candidate? They are often not one and the same.
Does their announcement speech match their stump speech? If they have won a previous election – does it match their acceptance speech?
Am I voting for the person who has the most signs of leadership or the most yard signs?
Are they solving problems or just putting off the hard decisions to win another election?
Are they inspiring courage or fear?
Is this a person who can represent me in a positive and creative manner? Do they lead in a collaborative and useful direction?
Are we choosing our leaders like we choose our jeans? Picking a “brand” because we recognize the name – regardless of the fit.
Did this person reach a true leadership position in society before they took office? Or did they find a system that allows them to coerce others while claiming to be leading by moral example?
I recognize my genealogy dictates the lens through which I view the “political season”. I also believe that — regardless of the news channel you watch or the direction you “lean” – we can all agree we’re lucky to live in a democracy. But democracy is tough and the democratic process does not guarantee we elect the best leaders. It is up to us to manage our own fate by paying attention, asking questions and taking action. It’s up to us to decide who will be an effective and inspiring leader – then it’s up to us to go out and vote.
By Stephanie Koehler [email protected]
